1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cottonseed composition having improved flowability and handlability and a method for its preparation, and its use as a feed for ruminants, particularly cattle or as a plantable source of cottonseed.
2. Discussion of the Background
Cottonseed is an ideal feed ingredient for ruminants, due to the balanced combination of protein, fiber and other nutrients contained therein. However, its use has not been widespread, due to significant handling problems. Cottonseed used for feeding has an outer coating of short cotton linters (short fibrous “hair-like” structures). These linters remain on the cottonseed after processing in cotton gins. During normal handling, the linters cause the cottonseed to clump together and cause difficulties in handling with traditional feed-grain handling equipment.
One solution proposed for this problem has been the preparation of a starch coated cottonseed. This is described in Wedegaertner, U.S. Pat. No. 5,750,466. The starch-coated cottonseed is produced by spraying gelatinized starch on the cottonseed and drying the coating. However, this process is very energy intensive and expensive, requiring significant expenditures in equipment for its production.
A different proposal for solving this problem has been proposed in a process for delinting the cottonseed by treatment with dilute acid or base, followed by drying, buffing and neutralization. The product so produced however, is not used for feed, but is instead used as cottonseed for planting.
Another proposal for solving this problem is that set forth in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/768,623, filed Jan. 25, 2001 by the present inventors. In that application, cottonseed is coated using a coating composition comprising (a) a member selected from the group consisting of water and liquid feed products, (b) a soluble phosphorous source and (c) a metal compound capable of interacting with the soluble phosphorous source to produce a coating on the cottonseed. However, this results in a cottonseed having a high phosphorous content. This can be an important consideration since overfeeding of phosphorous is often not economical beyond the nutritional requirements of the animal.
Accordingly, a method is needed to prepare a more easily handled, flowable cottonseed that provides a reduced phosphorous level in the final coated product.